Olympic skier speaks out against illegal fishing, finds salmon carcass in his mailbox

Warning: This story contains an image of a fish carcass.

When Jean-Luc Brassard opened his mailbox a few days ago, he made a gruesome, smelly discovery: the head of a decapitated fish, staring back at him.

The former Canadian ski champion says it was left there after he spoke out against illegal fishing near his home in Salaberry-de-Valleyfield, Que., along the St. Lawrence River. 

Earlier this month, Brassard, a 1994 Olympic gold medallist, went on 98.5 Montréal radio to denounce a group of fishers who reportedly frequent a spot near his property. 

"They're poachers who come at night, and they arrive with their headlamps," he told host Luc Ferrandez. "And what they do is they take fishing rods with grappling hooks."

This method, commonly called "snagging," involves piercing a fish's flesh with a grappling hook instead of using baits and lures. The practice is banned in Quebec.

"Then they take a photo with the fish as though they've done sport fishing," Brassard continued, adding that he's noticed a dramatic decline in the population of salmon in recent years, which pushed "all the good fly fishers" out of the region.

Brassard makes regular appearances on 98.5 Montréal, frequently discussing sports, fitness and the Olympics. 

When it comes to fishing, however, at least one of his listeners didn't like what he had to say. 

A few days after his radio appearance, in a move that can only be described as Godfather-esque, Brassard said four rotting salmon carcasses were scattered around his property, their heads severed.  

 

 

 

 

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A post shared by JL Bras (@jeanlucbrassard)

"On the driveway, along the house, on the kids' trampoline, and finally, in the mailbox!" he wrote on social media Monday.

"To their satisfaction, I have to say that I jumped opening it this morning! And I won't tell you about the smell!!!"

Brassard said he will continue to denounce illegal fishing and that he's reported his bizarre findings to the police.

"Why denounce? Because if we don't, we're all going to pay the price for bandits who take all the rights, never pay their fines [...] empty our lakes and rivers, and receive little or no punishment for their repeated offences," he wrote.

Quebec's Ministry of Forests, Fauna and Parks did not immediately respond to a request for comment.